Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• In post-apocalyptic Jiang City, Lin Xian notices unusual activity from his high-rise apartment and spots a helicopter approaching his building. He signals it with an orange cloth, hoping to be rescued or noticed.
• The helicopter’s passengers dismiss him. A wealthy middle-aged man, Mr. Wen, insists that people like Lin Xian will die before those in elite shelters, while a young girl reacts coldly to his arrogance.
• The helicopter is suddenly caught by an enormous suction force and dragged into the sky. The pilots discover the cause: a gigantic, floating humanoid corpse hidden within the clouds, later referred to as the Floating Sky Giant Corpse or Sky-Shading. The helicopter is swallowed by the clouds and destroyed.
• Lin Xian returns to his apartment, seals the windows and doors, uses deodorizer to conceal his presence, and waits for nightfall.
• At 6:45 p.m., darkness covers Jiang City. The first signs of the night’s horrors emerge: whispers, howls, and strange movements outside and beneath the building.
• Lin Xian remains calm, preparing a meal by candlelight and carefully rationing his supplies. He records that sunrise has been delayed until noon and that another twenty-one-day Polar Night may begin in less than five days.
• He uses his Esper ability, Mechanical Devour, to consume damaged machines and junk. Devouring mechanical objects grants him Mechanical Origin Points, skill proficiency, and occasionally increases his attributes.
• Devouring a hair dryer unexpectedly grants him the new skill Wind Cannon, which allows him to condense and fire compressed air. He tests it on a sofa cushion and confirms that it has offensive potential.
• The chapter explains the origins of the apocalypse: thirteen global Star Abyss zones spread a growing darkness called the Dark Tide, shortening daylight, causing Polar Nights, mutating the environment, infecting living creatures, and unleashing corpse tides and supernatural horrors.
• Survivors have formed convoys, bunkers, cults, and exploitative shelters. Radio broadcasts reveal that most of Jiang City’s population has already fled or died.
• Lin Xian reviews his abandoned online recruitment post for the Infinite Train Project, a heavily armed mobile fortress designed to travel along the 320,000-kilometer Orbital Ring and survive the apocalypse. Most people mocked the idea, but Lin Xian continues to see it as humanity’s best chance of survival.

2. Character Developments

• Lin Xian is established as cautious, resourceful, and highly disciplined. Rather than taking reckless risks, he gathers small mechanical objects, improves his abilities gradually, hides his presence, and prioritizes survival.
• His Esper ability, initially considered useless, is revealed to have significant long-term potential. Mechanical Devour has already improved his Strength and may eventually allow him to rival physically enhanced Espers.
• Lin Xian demonstrates emotional control in the face of terrifying events. Even after witnessing the helicopter’s destruction and hearing monsters outside, he calmly cooks, manages supplies, and studies his abilities.
• The discovery of Wind Cannon marks a major advancement. Lin Xian realizes that ordinary machines can produce unexpected supernatural skills, making discarded technology extremely valuable.
• Mr. Wen represents the privileged and ruthless survivors who believe wealth and status guarantee safety. His confidence is undermined when the helicopter is destroyed moments later.
• The unnamed young girl on the helicopter is portrayed as intelligent and morally resistant to Mr. Wen’s elitism, though her fate is left unknown.
• Lin Xian’s long-term goal becomes clearer: he is not merely surviving inside his apartment but preparing to construct a mobile, self-sufficient fortress train.

3. Significant Themes

• Survival through preparation: Lin Xian survives because of planning, restraint, concealed resources, and careful use of his abilities rather than impulsive heroism.
• Technology as power: Broken machines and discarded electronics become sources of strength, skills, and future survival tools. The chapter reframes “junk” as a vital resource.
• The collapse of social order: Radio broadcasts show survivors forming selective bunkers, exploitative recruitment groups, cults, and criminal shelters, revealing how disaster magnifies selfishness and inequality.
• False security and arrogance: Mr. Wen believes wealth and social status will protect him, but the supernatural disaster ignores human hierarchies.
• Humanity versus the unknown: The Star Abyss, Dark Tide, Polar Night, and giant corpse represent forces beyond conventional science or military power.
• Hope through impossible ambition: The Infinite Train sounds unrealistic to others, but its design offers mobility, defense, production, and escape from the advancing darkness. Lin Xian’s grand plan contrasts with the hopelessness spreading through Jiang City.

4. Character Interactions

• Lin Xian attempts to attract the helicopter’s attention by waving an orange signal, but Mr. Wen dismisses him and the other civilians as expendable.
• Mr. Wen lectures the young girl about social superiority and claims that privileged people will be the last to die. She responds with visible contempt, refusing to accept his worldview.
• The pilot and co-pilot react with growing panic as the helicopter loses lift, encounters the mysterious suction force, and rises toward the giant corpse. Their fear contrasts with Mr. Wen’s earlier confidence.
• Lin Xian has no direct interaction with the helicopter’s occupants, but his observation of them reinforces his isolation and his distrust of relying on others.
• Through radio broadcasts and online responses, Lin Xian indirectly encounters the wider survivor community: opportunistic leaders, religious extremists, desperate scientists, and people mocking his train project.
• The chapter ends with Lin Xian standing apart from the chaotic survivor groups, quietly pursuing his own plan to build the Infinite Train.

Key plot points and events

• With daylight shrinking by an hour each day, Lin Xian estimates that dawn will disappear from Jiang City in about five days. He continues preparing his escape plan: the Infinite, a heavy Juying 03E locomotive powered by his Mechanical Heart rather than scarce fuel.
• Lin’s ability lets him scan, repair, operate, and manufacture machinery, though using it takes concentration and stamina. He has equipped three carriages for living and supplies, future plant cultivation, and tools and a motorcycle. He spends the day fabricating thick composite armor and welding it over the train’s windows.
• Lin receives an unexpected call from Chen Sixuan, his former university teacher, who asks to join his plan. After the Polar Night, she has been isolated, nearly out of food, and rejected by groups demanding sexual favors.
• Lin says he cannot take her in without something valuable to contribute. Chen then reveals that her father was a senior Orbital Ring maintenance engineer and that she knows the locations of its 1,266 stations and 625 maintenance track sections. She also offers her language and cooking skills.
• Convinced her knowledge could help him navigate the vast, damaged railway, Lin agrees to retrieve her. Her phone dies immediately after she gives him her address. He returns to work, racing the remaining daylight.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian is practical and self-reliant, treating survival as a plan to be built rather than a rescue to await. He refuses to take Chen out of charity, but accepts her when she offers genuinely useful expertise. His ambitions also reveal a lighter, comfort-seeking side: he imagines adding entertainment, a large bed, and a bathtub to his fortress.
• Chen Sixuan has gone from admired teacher to frightened, desperate survivor. She struggles with the loss of her former status and briefly offers herself in exchange for safety, then finds a more dignified bargaining chip in her specialized knowledge. Lin’s calm voice gives her hope, though the call’s abrupt end leaves her anxious.
• Their relationship shifts from former teacher and student to potential survival partners. Lin’s familiarity with Chen makes him more willing to trust her, while her knowledge gives her a concrete role in his plan.

Significant themes

• Survival through preparation and skill: Lin’s mechanical ability and careful planning offer a possible answer to worsening conditions.
• Social collapse and vulnerability: The apocalypse strips away status and security, leaving Chen exposed to exploitation and forcing people to judge one another by practical value.
• Trust, usefulness, and cooperation: Lin is not motivated by charity, but he recognizes that specialized knowledge and a familiar face can make an ally valuable.
• Hope amid catastrophe: The train project—and Chen’s chance to join it—offers a narrow path forward as darkness approaches.

Key plot points and events

• Back at his fortified apartment, Lin Xian disinfects the entrance, checks Chen Sixuan’s location, and considers the danger of crossing 7.2 kilometers through a city overrun by zombies and worse. He plans carefully rather than rushing out.
• After nightfall, he settles in with limited food and supplies, though he has stored most of his provisions on the vehicle On the Infinite.
• At 2:42 a.m., strange noises in the corridor wake him. He sees what appears to be the dead Old Man Li outside his door, staring through the peephole and knocking.
• The knocking stops, but scratching begins in the wall beside Lin Xian. He stays silent and waits until it finally ceases.
• A bloodied teenage girl then appears, pleading for help before collapsing. Lin Xian refuses to open the door, suspecting she may be a trap or something supernatural.
• Old Man Li reappears beside the girl. Lin Xian spots a huge, many-legged black bug clinging to the corpse and apparently controlling its movements. The corpse lunges toward the girl.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian is cautious, resourceful, and disciplined, relying on preparation and restraint even when frightened. His curiosity, however, keeps drawing him back to the peephole.
• Chen Sixuan is not present, but Lin Xian’s intention to reach her establishes a risky potential rescue mission.
• Old Man Li has returned as a corpse-like figure, behaving unnaturally and seemingly controlled by the creature on his back.
• The girl appears vulnerable and begs Lin Xian for help, but he distrusts her because of the night’s inexplicable events.
• Lin Xian interacts with both figures only from behind the locked door; the girl’s plea receives no answer, while Old Man Li’s apparent attack on her remains outside.

Significant themes

• Survival through caution: In the apocalypse, impulsive compassion or curiosity can be dangerous.
• The uncanny and the unknown: Night brings threats that do not follow the familiar rules of zombies or human behavior.
• Isolation and moral uncertainty: Lin Xian must choose between protecting himself and responding to a seemingly helpless stranger.
• Control and bodily horror: The bug’s use of Old Man Li’s corpse suggests that the dead can become instruments of something even more disturbing.

Plot points and events

• A mysterious girl produces a powerful shockwave while apparently in danger, blasting Lin Xian and the door across his apartment and shattering the room.
• The blast also throws the Strange Corpse—Old Man Li, controlled by a Strange Bug—into the living room. Lin Xian uses his Wind Cannon to badly damage the corpse, then pins the bug with his blade. The clever creature tears itself apart to escape.
• The noise draws a horde of Zombies. With his shelter compromised, Lin grabs supplies, carries off the unconscious girl, and fights his way down the fire stairs to the underground train, the Infinite.
• The train’s armor withstands the surrounding Zombies. Lin uses a remote-controlled loudspeaker as a decoy to draw them away, then checks the girl and finds no visible wounds.
• Unsure whether the girl is dangerous, Lin binds her and leaves her in Carriage 2. He considers taking Line 3 to reach his former teacher, Chen Sixuan, whose home is near a subway entrance.
• After a tense, sleepless night aboard the train, Lin starts the Infinite at dawn. The train moves from the maintenance track onto the main line and heads into the Black Mist.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian shows compassion by rescuing the girl despite the danger, but remains cautious: he restrains her and weighs the risks of keeping her with him. His enhanced strength and Wind Cannon help him survive the attack.
• The girl remains unconscious and unexplained. Her shockwave suggests she may be an Esper or possess another extraordinary ability; her apparent lack of injuries deepens the mystery.
• The Strange Bug proves unusually intelligent, escaping by sacrificing part of its own body.
• Lin’s interactions with the girl are protective but wary; his encounter with the bug establishes it as a more dangerous and calculating threat than ordinary Zombies.

Significant themes

• Survival and adaptation: Lin abandons a ruined shelter, relies on preparation, and uses the train and decoy to endure the Zombie horde.
• Trust versus caution: He saves the girl but cannot safely trust her, balancing compassion against the risk of the unknown.
• Escalating threats and mystery: The Strange Bug and the girl suggest that the Black Night holds dangers and abilities beyond the familiar Zombie threat.
• Human ingenuity: The armored Infinite, Lin’s combat skills, and his planned route offer a fragile advantage in a hostile world.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Xian drives the locomotive Infinite out of the tunnel and deliberately plows through a group of zombies, marking the first successful step in his plan to travel by rail.
• He heads toward Jade Water Garden to find Chen Sixuan. The subway tracks are unexpectedly clear, and he stops near Sports West station to avoid attracting more zombies.
• Before leaving the train, Lin checks on the girl in Carriage 2, who remains inexplicably asleep. He seals off the other carriages, takes a short blade, and sets out on foot.
• Chen Sixuan, exhausted and hungry after two days without food, has been waiting for Lin to fulfill his promise. As doubts about his plan mount, she struggles to hold on to hope.
• Liang Wei, a predatory former colleague who lives in her building, arrives at her door. He offers food, then turns threatening when she refuses to let him in. Chen grabs a fruit knife as he kicks and pounds on the door.

Character developments

• Lin Xian moves from despair toward renewed confidence as the train’s successful launch gives him proof that his escape plan can work. He remains determined to reach Chen.
• Chen Sixuan is desperate but resilient: she clings to Lin’s promise despite doubts and hunger, and prepares to defend herself when Liang becomes violent.
• Liang Wei is exposed as an abusive opportunist. His supposed concern and offers of supplies give way to intimidation when Chen rejects him.
• The sleeping girl remains a mystery, as Lin cannot wake her.

Significant themes

• Hope amid collapse: Lin’s train breaking through the darkness contrasts with Chen’s wavering faith.
• Survival and dignity: Chen must weigh hunger against the danger of accepting Liang’s help.
• Power and vulnerability: The apocalypse makes people physically vulnerable, while Liang exploits scarcity and fear to control others.
• Determination versus doubt: Lin acts on his plan, while Chen questions whether it can succeed but continues to wait.

Character interactions

• Lin briefly checks on the sleeping girl, then leaves her safely sealed inside the train.
• Chen’s memories of Lin’s promise sustain her as she waits for him.
• Liang’s offers of food become a coercive confrontation; Chen refuses him and arms herself as he tries to force his way in.

Key plot points and events

• Director Liang threatens Chen Sixuan from outside her apartment, but Lin Xian arrives and kills him with a single blow.
• Chen opens the door and joins Lin, though the sight of Liang’s corpse makes her vomit. She gathers her belongings, and Lin takes several small kitchen appliances for reasons he does not explain.
• They check Liang’s apartment for supplies, but find no food or water—only a horrific scene suggesting he butchered his wife. Lin condemns Liang’s cruelty and urges Chen to keep quiet as they pass through the zombie-filled station.
• Lin leads Chen to the train, which he can operate using his mysterious ability. Once aboard, he turns off the lights, gives her bread and water, and establishes that they are now allies: she must trust his directions and help with supplies, navigation, and security.
• Lin tells Chen bluntly that he intends to sleep with her. She reacts with fear and uncertainty but answers quietly and continues eating.

Character developments

• Lin Xian is decisive and capable, killing Liang and guiding Chen through danger. Beneath his practical, commanding manner, he feels relief at having a familiar person nearby and is affected by the isolation of the apocalypse.
• Chen Sixuan is exhausted, hungry, and traumatized, but she quickly chooses to trust Lin as her best chance of survival. Her gratitude and dependence grow as he feeds and protects her, though his final statement unsettles her.

Significant themes

• Human cruelty versus animal instinct: Liang’s brutality is so extreme that Lin says comparing him to an animal insults animals.
• Survival and trust: The train offers temporary safety, but survival depends on cooperation and obedience in a world where people may be as dangerous as monsters.
• Isolation and human connection: Even amid catastrophe, familiar company eases Lin’s loneliness, while Chen’s rescue gives her hope.
• Unequal power and vulnerability: Lin controls the train and sets the terms of their partnership; Chen, weakened and dependent, has little room to challenge him.

Character interactions

• Lin’s rescue contrasts sharply with Liang’s predatory threats, and Chen’s relief at seeing Lin is mixed with fear of his violence.
• Lin gives Chen practical instructions and food, and she responds with obedience and gratitude.
• Their alliance is framed as mutual survival, but Lin’s declaration about sleeping with her introduces an unsettling power imbalance and leaves their relationship uncertain.

Plot and events

• During the Polar Night, an enormous train rattles through Jiang City, drawing attention from survivors along the tracks.
• Chen Sixuan recovers from the cold after eating and drinking aboard the train. She explores its reinforced, makeshift living space and discovers an unconscious young woman bound in another carriage.
• Lin Xian explains that the girl appeared outside his home asking for help, but he restrained her because she has not woken up. He and Chen Sixuan agree that she should be watched.
• Lin Xian plans to test the train and collect essential supplies before leaving the city. With four days until the Polar Night, he believes there is still time to prepare.
• He assigns Chen Sixuan to record the train’s routes, distance, stops, and condition, and to track sunrise times—information that may help them find a way out of the spreading darkness. She will also manage supplies and keep watch over the girl.
• Lin Xian follows a planned route along the city’s light-rail tracks while devouring small appliances to build up his Mechanical Heart and improve his abilities.

Character development and interactions

• Chen Sixuan shifts from exhausted and frightened to determined to contribute. She volunteers to help, accepts responsibility for navigation records and supplies, and feels touched when Lin Xian leaves her in charge of the train.
• Lin Xian gives Chen Sixuan practical duties and shows her some trust, but privately remains wary, treating the arrangement partly as a test. His focus on preparation and self-improvement reflects his cautious survival mindset.
• Their relationship gains a hint of emotional warmth, though Chen Sixuan reminds herself that Lin Xian is her student.
• The unidentified girl’s appearance creates immediate suspicion and a new responsibility for both of them.

Significant themes

• Survival through preparation: The pair must plan routes, gather supplies, and study the Polar Night rather than rely on luck.
• Trust under pressure: Even familiar relationships are uncertain in an apocalypse; Lin Xian’s trust in Chen Sixuan is limited and deliberate.
• Adaptability and growth: Lin Xian uses his mechanical abilities to strengthen himself, seeing technology and invention as crucial advantages in a collapsed world.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Xian reflects on the long-term needs of a self-sustaining train: reliable energy, defenses, food, and skilled people to help maintain and run it. He imagines recruiting engineers, growers, a cook, a doctor, fighters, and lookouts, but knows he cannot build everything at once.
• As the weather grows colder despite it being summer, he decides to search Aus Furniture City for bedding and other supplies.
• He stops the train in a quiet, relatively safe area and tells Chen Sixuan to stay aboard, keep the door locked, and use a walkie-talkie to contact him.
• The furniture center is mostly untouched, with mattresses, quilts, and furniture still on display. Lin Xian realizes he needs machinery to move the bulky goods.
• A Zombie attacks near the loading area. Lin Xian kills it with his Wind Cannon, noting that the skill improves with use but consumes significant energy.
• He finds a fuel-drained flatbed truck, then uses his Mechanical Heart to start a forklift and drive it into the building to transport supplies.

Character developments

• Lin Xian shows himself to be practical and forward-thinking, planning for the train’s long-term survival while prioritizing immediate needs such as warmth.
• He is capable and increasingly confident in dangerous situations, but remains mindful of his abilities’ limits and the risk of attracting larger threats.
• Chen Sixuan is cautious and concerned for Lin Xian’s safety, offering to help, though he decides she should remain aboard until the area is checked.

Significant themes

• Survival through planning: A lasting refuge will require more than immediate scavenging; it needs energy, food, protection, and specialized skills.
• Adaptation to a changing world: The spreading cold makes ordinary comforts like bedding essential survival supplies.
• Resourcefulness: Lin Xian turns overlooked equipment—a forklift—into a solution for moving bulky goods.
• Comfort and morale: He believes a livable, pleasant train matters, not merely a place to hide.

Character interactions

• Lin Xian reassures Chen Sixuan by explaining why she should stay on the train, gives her a walkie-talkie, and sets clear safety instructions.
• During the search, he confronts and kills a Zombie worker, then uses his abilities to take control of the forklift and begin hauling supplies.

Key plot points and events

• At Aus Furniture City, Lin Xian loads a sofa, folding bed, mattresses, pillows, blankets, a rug, and a large television onto a truck, prioritizing comfort and entertainment for the train’s living quarters.
• He drives the truck over the railway embankment and brings the haul aboard the Infinite. Chen Sixuan helps him move everything into Carriage 1.
• As night approaches, Lin Xian sends Chen ahead to eat and settle in, then chooses to risk using Mechanical Devour on the truck—a rare chance to upgrade the train. He secures himself to the Infinite with a tow cable so he can remain connected to it.
• The Black Night falls abruptly at 6:45 p.m. Lin Xian continues devouring the truck in darkness, keeping the train’s lights off and listening for danger. The process reaches 77% before he hears gravel crunch nearby.

Character developments

• Lin Xian shows both a practical, comfort-focused side and a willingness to take calculated risks. He remains wary of the brutal power struggles among survivors and rejects the idea of becoming a leader, fearing he could end up exploited.
• Chen Sixuan is puzzled by Lin Xian’s unusual priorities but readily helps with the furnishings and follows his instructions without protest.

Significant themes

• Survival versus comfort: In a desperate world, Lin Xian still invests in making the train a livable home.
• Risk and resourcefulness: He takes advantage of a limited opportunity to strengthen the train, despite the danger of the Black Night.
• Uncertain safety and power: Shelters, escape, and even Esper leadership offer no guaranteed protection; survival depends on difficult choices and scarce trust.

Character interactions

• Chen helps Lin Xian carry the furniture into the train, though she silently questions whether it counts as survival supplies.
• Lin sends her away before beginning the dangerous truck-devouring process, leaving him alone to face the night and whatever caused the final sound.

Chapter Summary: “White Aberrant Creature”

Key Plot Points and Events

• While waiting beside the railway at night, Lin Xian hears heavy, unnatural cracking sounds and senses that something is watching him.
• He completes the use of Mechanical Devour on a small truck, gaining Mechanical Origin Points, skill proficiency, and increases to his Strength, Speed, and Defense. His Speed reaches a new level, noticeably sharpening his vision and reflexes.
• The truck’s sudden disintegration attracts a terrifying, three-meter-tall gray-white humanoid creature. The monster has elongated limbs, blood-red eyes, a huge tooth-filled mouth, and claws as hard as steel.
• The creature attacks Lin Xian, but his newly enhanced speed allows him to evade its first strike. His Wind Cannon only knocks it back, revealing that its body is extremely resistant to damage.
• Lin Xian retreats into Infinite, activates the Mechanical Heart, and orders the train forward. Chen Sixuan, alerted by the disturbance, runs to the driver’s cab to help monitor the tracks.
• The monster grabs the train’s hydraulic tail lift and attempts to hold onto or overturn the carriage. Lin Xian’s short blade cannot cut its hand, but he realizes the creature is vulnerable in the eyes.
• He fires a precise Wind Gun into one of its eyes. The attack causes severe pain and forces the monster to release the train.
• Infinite escapes into the darkness, leaving Lin Xian shaken by the encounter and horrified by the realization that far more dangerous creatures may inhabit the Polar Night.

Character Developments

• Lin Xian becomes more alert to the dangers of the night and demonstrates improved physical abilities after increasing his Speed attribute.
• His fear is intense, but he remains capable of making quick tactical decisions under pressure. He adapts when brute force fails, identifying the monster’s eye as a weak point.
• The encounter deepens Lin Xian’s understanding of the Dark Tide and convinces him that remaining in Polar Night is nearly impossible.
• Chen Sixuan responds responsibly and cooperatively, immediately assisting Lin Xian by going to the driver’s cab when danger appears.

Significant Themes

• The overwhelming danger of darkness: The Polar Night is shown to contain unknown creatures far more terrifying than ordinary zombies.
• Humanity’s vulnerability: Advanced weapons and physical strength are insufficient against the White Creature’s durability and power.
• Adaptation and survival: Lin Xian survives by using observation, newly gained abilities, and strategic thinking rather than relying solely on force.
• The necessity of escape: The chapter reinforces the idea that humanity must flee the Dark Tide instead of attempting to survive within it.
• The unknown nature of the threat: The creature does not appear to be an infected human, suggesting that the dangers of the Star Abyss may be alien or fundamentally beyond the known world.

Character Interactions

• Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan communicate briefly but effectively during the attack. He warns her through his actions and orders her to watch the tracks, while she immediately obeys and helps operate the train.
• Lin Xian’s primary interaction is with the White Giant Monster, shifting from frightened evasion to direct combat. He first tests the Wind Cannon, then uses a blade unsuccessfully, and finally exploits the monster’s eye to force it away.

Chapter Summary: “Chen Sixuan’s Thoughts”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lin Xian drives the train through the dark city, but the noise attracts large numbers of zombies. To avoid further danger, Chen Sixuan suggests stopping on the elevated light-rail tracks.
• Once the train is parked, Lin Xian shuts off all lights and watches for the mysterious White Giant Monster that attacked them earlier.
• They plan to remain hidden until daylight, then travel to a freight warehouse near Jiang City Station. Lin Xian also hopes to find an electric locomotive there, which he could use as a power-generating backup for the train.
• Lin Xian notices Chen Sixuan’s severe exhaustion after months of isolation and recent traumatic events. She tells him their food and water will last only about a month if they eat once a day.
• He gives her a can of fruit and orders her to sleep, but Chen Sixuan misinterprets his words and briefly imagines that, because of the apocalypse and his having saved her, she has surrendered her former social values and owes him anything he wants.
• Lin Xian remains focused on survival and does not exploit her vulnerability. He tells her simply to sleep while they take turns keeping watch.
• Lin Xian checks on the mysterious girl in Carriage 2, who has been asleep for nearly twenty hours. Unable to wake her, he carries her to Carriage 1 and places her beside the sleeping Chen Sixuan under blankets.

Character Developments

• Lin Xian: Demonstrates caution, practical planning, and responsibility. He thinks ahead about energy production, food supplies, and escape routes. Despite recognizing Chen Sixuan’s awkward behavior, he prioritizes security over romance or sexual interest.
• Chen Sixuan: Begins recovering physically but remains emotionally fragile and psychologically affected by prolonged isolation, Director Liang’s death, and the monster attack. Her thoughts reveal gratitude, dependence, confusion, and a growing attraction toward Lin Xian.
• The mysterious girl: Remains unexplained and unconscious, making her abilities, intentions, and role in the group uncertain.

Significant Themes

• Survival and resource management: Food, water, electricity, shelter, and transportation are treated as essential strategic resources.
• Psychological effects of catastrophe: The apocalypse has weakened Chen Sixuan’s emotional stability and altered her understanding of morality, relationships, and personal autonomy.
• Trust and vulnerability: Chen Sixuan depends heavily on Lin Xian, while Lin Xian must decide whether the mysterious girl is an asset or a potential threat.
• Humanity amid danger: Lin Xian’s practical kindness—feeding, sheltering, and protecting the women—contrasts with the violence and inhumanity surrounding them.
• Uncertainty: The White Giant Monster and the sleeping girl remain unresolved dangers, keeping the group’s future unclear.

Character Interactions

• Chen Sixuan helps Lin Xian choose a safer place to stop the train.
• Lin Xian reassures her about their route and future plans while discussing food and survival.
• He gives her food and instructs her to rest, unintentionally triggering her romantic and submissive fantasies.
• Lin Xian later finds her sitting nervously by the bed and sends her to sleep without taking advantage of the situation.
• He attempts to wake the mysterious girl, jokes with her when she does not respond, and ultimately moves her into the safer sleeping area with Chen Sixuan.

Plot and events

• After surviving an encounter with a White Giant Monster, Lin Xian notices that using Wind Cannon under extreme danger rapidly increased its proficiency. Devouring a small truck also earned him Mechanical Origin Points, skill progress, and attribute points—but he recognizes that consuming vehicles is slow, exhausting, and risky, especially with so little daylight.
• At 15:00, daylight returns briefly. Lin Xian sees the darkness still swallowing areas near Lu City and Dingzhou, close to the center of Star Abyss No. 3, and reflects that Jiang City’s survivors were at least given time to flee.
• He prepares Infinite for a difficult journey through Jiang City’s freight yard. Planning to tow an electric locomotive, he teaches Chen Sixuan how to operate the carriage-coupling controls so she can help while he handles the track switch.
• As the train approaches the city’s outskirts, they see escape roads jammed with wrecked cars, bodies, and scattered belongings. Zombies roam the area, and no survivors are visible outside, though people hiding near the tracks spot the train and call for help. Lin Xian expects desperation, not goodwill, and keeps moving.
• Snow begins falling despite the season. Lin Xian realizes that, alongside the Dark Tide and monsters, severe cold may soon threaten their survival by increasing their need for food and energy and possibly requiring train heating.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian remains practical and cautious, weighing ambitious ideas against their real costs. The White Giant’s attack has reinforced his sense of vulnerability, so he prioritizes strengthening Infinite and improving his abilities. He also shows a protective, considerate side by letting Chen Sixuan rest and carefully teaching her a vital task.
• Chen Sixuan feels guilty for sleeping while Lin stayed awake, but responds by listening closely and offering to help. Seeing the devastated roads makes her especially grateful to be traveling with him. Lin, in turn, takes comfort in her company and recalls their school days.
• Their relationship grows through trust and teamwork: Lin explains the train’s procedures, while Chen accepts a role in the risky locomotive-coupling plan.

Significant themes

• Survival under pressure: Power and resources offer advantages, but every gain involves time, effort, or danger.
• Human desperation and mutual trust: Hidden survivors’ pleas and the threat of theft contrast with the cooperation developing between Lin and Chen.
• Escalating catastrophe: The chapter widens the danger from darkness and monsters to mass displacement, zombies, and approaching climate disaster.
• Adaptation and planning: Lin’s survival depends on anticipating practical problems—rail logistics, energy, food, defenses, and the consequences of falling temperatures.

Key plot points

• Lin Xian carefully drives the Infinite through Jiang City’s freight yard, avoiding obstacles and noise. He switches the tracks and parks beside Loading Platform 4.
• He tells Chen Sixuan to stay inside with the doors locked, then searches the yard for a locomotive.
• Lin Xian finds a nearly new Star 7F electric freight locomotive. Using Mechanical Heart, he confirms it is in good condition and recognizes its advanced energy-storage systems as a valuable temporary power source for the Infinite.
• Before he can prepare it, he hears knocking and calls for help from Warehouse 14. Inside, he sees a younger woman and an elderly woman trapped in a cold-storage freezer.
• The younger woman pleads for help, but Lin Xian realizes the scene is a trap. Armed attackers fire at him. He dodges into the second freezer and locks himself inside; its thick, insulated construction withstands their shots.
• The two gunmen are joined by the women, who reveal themselves as part of the ambush. The attackers are now gathered outside Lin Xian’s freezer, unable to open it.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian shows caution and tactical awareness: he protects Chen Sixuan, recognizes the suspicious rescue scene, and reacts quickly when attacked. His ability also lets him see value in the otherwise useless electric locomotive.
• Chen Sixuan trusts Lin Xian’s instructions and remains safely aboard the Infinite, showing growing confidence in his ability to protect her.
• The younger woman, elderly woman, and two armed men work together to lure and trap Lin Xian. The younger woman plays the distressed daughter, while the men attempt to kill him.

Significant themes

• Appearances can be deceptive: an apparent plea for help masks a coordinated ambush.
• Preparedness and resourcefulness: Lin Xian’s caution and specialized ability turn both a locomotive and a freezer into advantages.
• Trust and vulnerability: survivors face danger not only from zombies and the collapse of infrastructure, but also from other people.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Xian realizes the family lured him into the cold-storage room to kill him and steal his train, the Infinite. Their trap involved pretending to be helpless.
• After locking himself inside the foul-smelling room, Lin is chained in from the outside and temporarily trapped. The family threatens him and plans to force him and Chen Sixuan to operate the train for them.
• Lin warns Chen over the walkie-talkie not to open the train doors. When he sees armed men heading toward the train, he tells her to stay quiet and wait for further instructions.
• Chen refuses to let Huang Jie in despite his threats. He spots her inside and repeatedly smashes the armored windshield, but it remains intact.
• Lin searches the cold-storage room and discovers large freezer cabinets. Unable to escape immediately, he realizes he can use his ability to devour them and begins considering this as a way to turn the room to his advantage.

Character developments

• Lin Xian stays alert and resourceful, recognizing the family’s deception and protecting Chen even while trapped. He admits he lacks combat experience and avoids a risky fight, instead looking for another solution.
• Chen Sixuan is frightened but follows Lin’s instructions, showing resolve by refusing to open the door.
• The old woman is revealed as the family’s calculating leader, willing to deceive and threaten the pair to seize the train.
• Huang Zhaojian and Huang Jie reveal their greed and brutality. Huang Jie becomes especially predatory after spotting Chen, while the family’s young boy eagerly anticipates taking control of the train.

Significant themes

• Survival and trust: In the lawless apocalypse, apparent victims may be predators, and survival depends on caution.
• Ingenuity over force: Lin avoids a direct fight he may lose and searches for a way to exploit his surroundings.
• Abuse of power and lawlessness: The family intends to steal, kill, and assault without fear of consequences.
• Fear and resilience: Chen’s terror is balanced by her determination to follow Lin’s guidance.

Character interactions

• Lin confronts the family verbally and warns them that he sees through their plan, while they alternate threats and false promises to make him cooperate.
• Lin and Chen coordinate through the walkie-talkie: he gives instructions, and she trusts and obeys them despite the attackers’ intimidation.
• Huang Jie’s threats and violence toward Chen intensify the danger, while the old woman directs the family’s attempt to take the train.

Key plot points and events

• Huang Jie shoots repeatedly at the train’s reinforced window, then urinates on it in a crude display. He and his brother, Huang Zhaojian, plan to seize the train and its supplies after forcing Lin Xian out.
• Lin Xian reassures Chen Sixuan over the walkie-talkie, then uses Mechanical Devour on the large commercial freezers in the cold-storage room. The process is slow, but each freezer yields Mechanical Origin Points, skill proficiency, and attribute bonuses.
• The Huang family tries and fails to pry open the cold-storage door with pipes and crowbars. They decide to wait out the night, confident the train cannot leave without Lin Xian.
• Chen Sixuan organizes the train’s supplies while daylight remains, then secures the carriages for nightfall and keeps watch over the unconscious young girl, who has been asleep for two days.
• Darkness falls, bringing zombie growls and other unsettling sounds. The Huang family barricades itself in another cold-storage room.
• Lin Xian devours three freezers over the evening and reaches Mechanical Devour Level 2. A fourth freezer remains.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian stays composed despite the danger outside. Rather than confront the Huang family immediately, he exploits his confinement to strengthen his abilities and physical attributes.
• Chen Sixuan is frightened for Lin Xian but follows his instructions, takes responsibility for the train’s supplies, and remains alert to the girl’s condition.
• Huang Jie is impulsive and openly predatory toward Chen Sixuan. Huang Zhaojian restrains him and pushes a more calculated plan: wait until Lin Xian is forced out and take control of the train.
• The Huang family, including Gong Li and the elderly woman, acts collectively, discussing the risks and relying on their barricaded shelter to survive the night. Their son is disappointed when they postpone boarding the train.

Significant themes

• Survival and preparation: Characters secure food, shelter, and transport as night approaches.
• Power through adaptation: Lin Xian turns a dangerous setback into an opportunity to build strength and improve his ability.
• Threat and vulnerability: The Huang brothers’ intentions make the train—and Chen Sixuan—unsafe even before the monsters arrive.
• Suspense and uncertainty: The coming darkness, unexplained sounds, and the young girl’s prolonged sleep leave the characters facing dangers they cannot fully predict.

Chapter Summary: “Make the Tiger Devour the Wolf”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lin Xian successfully devours the final freezer, with the upgraded Mechanical Devour skill completing the process in only fifty-five minutes—almost twice as fast as before.
• The freezer grants him 25 Mechanical Origin Points, additional skill proficiency, and a new special skill: Ice Shield.
• Lin tests the Ice Shield and discovers that it can create solid ice from nothing. Although it consumes significant energy and may not withstand bullets, Lin realizes it can provide an invaluable source of clean drinking water in the apocalypse.
• To escape the freezer room and retaliate against the Huang family, Lin uses his Wind Cannon through the narrow gap in the chained door, firing at the opposite freezer room.
• The explosions attract nearby Zombies and draw a rapidly approaching Corpse Tide toward the Huang family’s hiding place.
• A massive red Strange Bug, resembling a giant centipede over ten meters long, joins the attack. It tears through the Zombies and breaks into the Huang family’s freezer room.
• The Huang family panics and fires blindly, but the gunfire and screams soon stop. The family is presumably killed by the Zombies and the Red Bug.
• Lin seals his own door and watches silently, shocked by the creature’s terrifying appearance. His plan succeeds, but the presence of the Red Bug makes the situation far more dangerous than expected.

Character Developments

• Lin Xian becomes more confident and resourceful as he experiments with his new abilities. He quickly recognizes the practical value of Ice Shield beyond combat, especially as a renewable source of clean water.
• His thinking becomes increasingly tactical and ruthless. Rather than confronting the Huang family directly, he manipulates the environment and uses monsters to eliminate them.
• However, Lin also realizes that his strategy was extremely dangerous. The appearance of the Red Bug reminds him that he is still vulnerable and urgently needs stronger armor, weapons, and engine power.
• The Huang family shifts from smug confidence to terror. Their belief that the reinforced freezer room could protect them collapses once the Red Bug breaches it.

Significant Themes

• Adaptation and survival: Lin constantly evaluates how new powers can be used practically in the apocalypse, turning Ice Shield from a defensive skill into a crucial survival resource.
• Resource scarcity: Clean water is portrayed as more valuable than combat power, emphasizing how ordinary necessities become precious after civilization collapses.
• Using danger against danger: The chapter’s central strategy is to make the “tiger” of the Corpse Tide devour the “wolf” of the Huang family.
• Unpredictability of the apocalypse: Lin expects the White Giant Monster but encounters an even more terrifying creature, showing that the world’s dangers are constantly evolving.
• Moral ambiguity and revenge: Lin deliberately endangers the Huang family, reflecting his willingness to use lethal methods against those who tried to trap him.

Character Interactions

• Lin interacts indirectly with the Huang family by firing Wind Cannons at their door and deliberately attracting the Corpse Tide.
• Inside the freezer room, Huang Zhaojian and Huang Jie attempt to protect the family with their firearms, while the old woman tries to keep everyone quiet and calm.
• The family’s fear intensifies as Zombies attack the door and the Red Bug breaks inside. Their frantic communication contrasts with Lin’s calculated silence outside.
• Lin’s final reaction to the Red Bug is one of alarm rather than triumph, reinforcing that although he has eliminated his immediate enemies, he remains surrounded by overwhelming threats.

Chapter Summary: “Connecting the Electric Locomotive”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After enduring two nights without sleep, Lin Xian survives until daylight and observes the aftermath of the attack on Cold Storage 1. The middle-aged man who had trapped survivors has apparently been killed and eaten by Zombies.
• Lin Xian contacts Chen Sixuan by radio and confirms that she is safe. They proceed with their plan to attach an electric locomotive to the train.
• To clear the area, Lin lures dozens of Zombies away by creating noise in an empty warehouse, then returns to the railway platform.
• Using his Mechanical Heart ability, Lin Xian enters and operates the Huanxing 7F electric locomotive. He detaches it from its original carriage and connects it behind the armored Juying 03E locomotive.
• The train, now renamed or configured as the expanded “Infinite,” consists of the Juying 03E at the front, the Huanxing 7F as a second locomotive for energy recovery and storage, and three passenger carriages.
• Because the new locomotive has not yet been armored, the group must leave immediately. Lin Xian drives east along the Jiangyu Line at approximately 80 kilometers per hour.
• Radio broadcasts reveal that nearby cities have fallen, major roads are blocked, corpse tides are spreading, and Aberrant Entities are appearing across a vast region. Survivors are desperately seeking groups, bunkers, or protection.
• Reports suggest that traveling several hundred kilometers east may temporarily restore an hour of daylight, but Lin Xian recognizes that reaching such distances is extremely difficult.
• Lin decides they must stop before nightfall because he lacks the visibility and confidence to drive safely in darkness. He also realizes that radar, drones, or similar equipment will be necessary to detect obstacles on the tracks.

Character Developments

• Lin Xian remains vigilant, practical, and increasingly hardened by the apocalypse. He feels no remorse over the deaths of the family who attempted to ambush travelers, viewing them as deserving their fate.
• His competence grows as he combines combat ability, mechanical knowledge, and strategic thinking to manage the train and protect the group.
• Lin also recognizes the limits of his current abilities, particularly his inability to safely drive at night and his lack of tools for surveying the railway ahead.
• Chen Sixuan remains cooperative and dependable, assisting with the locomotive connection and monitoring the train’s speed. However, the news of the family’s deaths deeply unsettles her, emphasizing her struggle to adapt from a sheltered life to the brutality of the new world.
• Their relationship continues to develop through mutual trust, communication, and teamwork.

Significant Themes

• The collapse of civilization: Radio reports portray widespread societal failure, abandoned cities, blocked roads, and desperate survival groups.
• Moral degradation and survival: The death of the predatory family reflects how violence and betrayal have become commonplace, while Lin’s reaction shows the characters’ shifting moral standards.
• Technology as a survival tool: The electric locomotive significantly improves the “Infinite’s” mobility and endurance, while future technologies such as radar and drones become essential for survival.
• The struggle against time and darkness: Daylight is a limited resource, and the spreading Polar Night or Dark Tide forces the group to constantly calculate distance, speed, and safe stopping points.
• Adaptation and resilience: Chen must emotionally adjust to the apocalypse, while Lin must continually expand his practical abilities and recognize weaknesses in his preparations.

Character Interactions

• Lin and Chen maintain radio contact throughout the operation, reassuring each other and coordinating the locomotive transfer.
• Chen helps Lin connect the Huanxing 7F and later records the train’s speed while warning him about the track conditions.
• Their conversation about the dead family highlights the contrast between Lin’s hardened outlook and Chen’s lingering sensitivity.
• Together, they listen to survivor broadcasts and use the information to assess the spread of the catastrophe and plan their route eastward.

Plot points and events

• Lin Xian’s train leaves Jiang City, where a vast, ominous cloud still hangs over the city, and travels into the quieter countryside.
• A convoy called Oasis spots the train. Its members realize it may carry valuable fuel, and Zhang Dayong alerts their leader, Liu Wei.
• Liu Wei, an opportunistic newly awakened Esper who has gathered armed followers and built himself a petty kingdom, orders his men to intercept the train near Yushan Station.
• Lin Xian discusses the danger of attracting attention and the need to recruit carefully with Chen Sixuan. He values trustworthy, compatible teammates over simply having more people.
• Lin spots a car deliberately blocking the tracks and recognizes an ambush. He sends Chen Sixuan to protect herself and the sleeping girl in the carriage.
• Liu Wei’s men open fire on the cab. Rather than stop, Lin accelerates, intending to use the train to smash through the blockade.

Character developments

• Lin Xian remains practical and independent. He recognizes the train’s usefulness and its risks, and is unwilling to let just anyone join his group. Under attack, he responds aggressively instead of surrendering.
• Chen Sixuan worries about the Oasis threat and raises the problem of recruiting allies. She also misreads Lin’s comment about liking his teammates as flirtation, becoming embarrassed.
• Liu Wei is revealed as a vain, ruthless opportunist. His sudden power as an Esper has turned a former shop owner into an armed leader who expects others to submit to him.
• Zhang Dayong quickly sees the train as a potential source of fuel and helps set the interception in motion.

Character interactions

• Zhang Dayong and Huang Mao discuss the train’s fuel, prompting Zhang to contact Liu Wei.
• Liu Wei commands his followers to block the train and attack when it refuses to stop.
• Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan discuss the need for allies and the importance of character and compatibility.
• During the ambush, Lin urgently directs Chen Sixuan to safety; she protects the sleeping girl in Carriage 1.

Significant themes

• Survival and power: The apocalypse rewards those who can turn unusual abilities into authority, but that authority can foster exploitation and arrogance.
• Trust and community: Lin sees potential allies as a matter of quality, not quantity, emphasizing character over numbers.
• Attention as a liability: The train offers mobility and strength, but its size and noise attract dangerous notice.
• Conflict over resources: Fuel and transportation become prizes worth risking violence to obtain.

Plot points

• Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan escape Liu Wei’s roadblock by driving their heavy locomotive through a sedan and a hail of gunfire. The train’s armor withstands the bullets.
• Liu Wei reveals himself as an Esper with four powerful, agile tentacles and pursues the train. He cracks the windshield, prompting Lin Xian to stop before the damage can leave them exposed after nightfall.
• Lin Xian tells Chen Sixuan to keep the cab door shut, then confronts Liu Wei outside. Lin Xian surprises him with a Wind Cannon, but Liu Wei’s tentacle catches Lin Xian’s ankle, sending both men tumbling down a slope to the riverbank.
• Injured but still fighting, Lin Xian tricks Liu Wei into shielding his face, then rushes him and lands a hard punch to the nose. Liu Wei realizes he has badly underestimated his opponent.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian acts decisively and pragmatically: he chooses to confront Liu Wei rather than risk damage to the train, and uses surprise, a feint, and close-range aggression to counter a stronger-looking foe. He also learns firsthand how resilient Espers can be.
• Liu Wei, initially boastful and predatory, becomes frightened and cautious after Lin Xian’s attacks. His inexperience in combat leaves him vulnerable despite his strength and enhanced reflexes.
• Chen Sixuan is terrified by Liu Wei’s monstrous appearance and remains in the cab at Lin Xian’s instruction. Liu Wei’s interest in her adds urgency to Lin Xian’s decision to fight.
• Their conflict is a contest of powers and nerve: Liu Wei relies on his tentacles and physical force, while Lin Xian gains the advantage through surprise and tactical deception.

Significant themes

• Adaptability and strategy: Clever timing can offset an opponent’s physical advantages.
• Survival under pressure: Lin Xian weighs immediate danger against the risks of damage and exposure after dark.
• Power and vulnerability: Both men are Espers, but having extraordinary abilities does not guarantee experience or control.

Plot and events

• Injured but driven by desperation to survive, Lin Xian resumes his fight with Liu Wei. They trade ranged attacks and keep their distance, wary of each other’s abilities.
• As night approaches, Liu Wei proposes ending the fight, but Lin Xian refuses. He tricks Liu Wei into guarding his face, then shoots him in the groin, breaks through his tentacle attack with an Ice Wall, and fires into his eye.
• Lin Xian follows up by repeatedly smashing Liu Wei’s face with a rock until the tentacles stop moving. Badly hurt himself, he notices a strange light in the sky and realizes something is wrong.
• At the train, Chen Sixuan remains trapped in the cab while Liu Wei’s thugs try unsuccessfully to break in. They give up as night nears, planning to return with tools and leaving the train blocked on the tracks.
• A family arrives, begging Chen Sixuan to let them shelter inside. Their pleas—including the mother’s offer to hand over her baby—overwhelm her, but fear keeps her from opening the door. The calls fade, and the Black Night arrives.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xian shows fierce survival instinct, tactical cunning, and grim resolve, but the victory leaves him seriously injured. His fight with Liu Wei turns on feints and exploiting Liu Wei’s assumptions.
• Liu Wei, confident in his superior tentacles and wary of Lin Xian’s ranged attack, is outmaneuvered and killed. His brief appeal for a truce contrasts with his earlier brutality.
• Chen Sixuan is isolated and terrified. Her struggle over whether to help the desperate family reveals compassion, but also how fear and the apocalyptic danger have constrained her choices.
• The thugs’ casual cruelty and self-interest are evident as they abandon the family and plan to return for Chen Sixuan. The family’s increasingly desperate pleas intensify the moral pressure on her.

Significant themes

• Survival at any cost: Lin Xian’s resolve carries him through a brutal fight, while Chen Sixuan must decide whether helping others is worth risking her own safety.
• Trust and deception: Liu Wei’s false offer of peace and Lin Xian’s feints show how dangerous misplaced trust can be.
• Moral choices under fear: Chen Sixuan’s refusal to open the door is emotionally painful, leaving the consequences unresolved as night falls.
• The threat of night: The approaching Black Night drives the characters’ decisions and ends the chapter on a looming danger.